Friday 29 Mar 2024
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KOTA KINABALU (Nov 15): The Sabah state government has reaffirmed its pledge that the whole state will produce palm oil that will be compliant with the Roundtable of Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO) standards by year 2025.

Speaking at the closing of the 16th instalment of the annual Roundtable Conference on Sustainable Palm Oil (RT16) held here today, deputy chief minister of Sabah Datuk Seri Panglima Wilfred Madius Tangau said the decision was arrived at, after the state cabinet's deliberations.

“We recognise that this is not enough and we have a long way to go. In 2015, Sabah made a 10-year commitment for all oil palm product produced in the state to be 100% RSPO-certified by 2025.

“And I was made to understand that this was one of the concerns, especially after the change of government. But this direction will continue to be adopted by the present government. Let me assure you that the cabinet has deliberated on this and has decided to continue with this,” he said in his closing speech.

Tangau stressed that the decision to adopt the RSPO standards will not be contradictory to the federal government’s Malaysian Sustainable Palm Oil (MSPO) certification scheme.

“We realised there are a lot of merits and strengths in doing the RSPO and that is why the [Sabah] cabinet has agreed and has decided to go along this path. 

“This does not mean we will forgo our own standard, the MSPO. In fact, the federal government is putting money into MSPO and we will do this concurrently,” he explained.

According to Tangau, Sabah in 2017 produced more than 5.2 million tonnes of crude palm oil (CPO), contributing some 30% of Malaysia’s total production, or roughly 12% of the global supply.

The state is also Malaysia's largest producer of RSPO-certified sustainable palm oil, at 1.55 million tonnes from the months of January to October this year. 

This means 28% of Sabah palm oil production or about 400,000ha (25%) of the total oil palm plantation in Sabah, are RSPO-certified. Of this, about 623 smallholders covering a total area of 3,960ha have achieved the RSPO certification, Tangau said.

In his closing address, RSPO co-chairman Datuk Carl Bek-Nielsen highlighted the huge gap between the supply and demand of RSPO-certified palm oil and called for greater commitment from buyers. He said the current uptake of certified palm oil at 65% of the global supply, is disappointing and will require shared responsibilities.

He also said the time has come for RSPO members to be obliged to put forward and be audited against time-bound plans to move towards 100% certified palm oil. "The practice of shifting the goal-post when voluntary targets approach, must come to an immediate end,” he stressed.

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